✔𝚨 𝚸𝛐𝐞𝐭'𝐬 𝐓𝐚𝐥𝐞 ➳ 𝚩𝐮𝐜𝐤𝐲 𝚩𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐬

Chapter 8

Nothing compares to being on the field of battle. Melora did her best to prepare the men under her command, plan and strategize the best she could. Often, Bucky and Dugan would be by her side, explaining and walking everyone through what was to come.

The faces of the men around her scared her to death. Not because they were frightened, but the opposite. Their faces were lit in broad smiles, fire in their eyes. A purity shone from them. Who had seen a battle and who had not was clear. They were yet innocent, naïve and pure.

Months did go by before the unit saw any real action, and she could tell how they were all aching for a fight. The usual paradox of war, the tediousness of it. Continuing to stay inactive and just train bored the soldiers, and they always came to her begging for action.

"How do you do this again?" Melora asked, looking down at the weapon in her hand. Guns. She knew how they functioned, in theory, and her archery skills had proven to be useful, but she was no match for Bucky.

"Like this." Bucky smiled and took the gun from her, clearing the chamber and then handing it back to her. "Now, try to hit the bullseye."

The two of them spent many hours on the shooting range, teaching her how exactly to go about these weapons. Melora had not exactly said it aloud, but it was quite clear to him, she had no idea how to operate them.

As to not sow any more doubt in her capabilities as a leader, he was teaching her how to properly shoot with them. It was a journey; the sound alone was still one she hated, and she was starting to miss the sounds of swords clinging against each other.

She put up the weapon, stretched out from her shoulder as she rested her cheek lightly against it, looking through the scope and finding her target. Bucky did not need to tell her about the way she should be breathing, she had that down perfectly.

The breath hitched in her throat, and she was sure the target was perfect as she pushed back the trigger. The sound deafening, and Bucky picked up the binoculars lying between them, a soft chuckle leaving him.

"You sure are a fast learner," he grinned and handed them to her. She brought them to her eyes and saw how the bullet had hit the bullseye almost perfectly – just slightly off. A sharp exhale left her, surprised by her abilities.

"Be careful, Bucky, before you know it your post will become obsolete," she grinned, and he shook his head.

"Not that fast of a learner," he settled, not looking as amused any longer, but it faded as quickly as it had a arrived and the grin slid back on his face.

Eventually, after months, the order came, and she had to brief the unit. They were going to see their first battle. A roadside ambush, so not anything too harsh, but she was still scared of the casualties. Melora always came to care too much for the people around her.

She remembered sitting down with Thor after one of their battles. His brother never understood that aspect of things, so she spoke with Thor instead. Back then, the blond man had insisted it was what made her so good at war, even if she doubted herself.

Frigga explained it in better words. The doubt was healthy, and only fools never doubted themselves. The way she cared for people showed she wanted to see the end of the fighting, that she did not care for the thrill of battle or the power that might come with it.

Melora begged that the two of them were right.

Maybe it was why she had insisted on being there, on the front with the rest of the troops. She was back in her Asgardian clothes, more comfortable fighting in it. The tanks and supply cars came driving past them before she knew it, and the bombs were set off.